Patton (1970)

The World War II phase of the career of the controversial American general, George S. Patton.

Director:

Franklin J. Schaffner

Writers:

Francis Ford Coppola (screen story and screenplay), Edmund H. North (screen story and screenplay)

Stars:

George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Stephen Young

Won 7 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George C. Scott	...	General George S. Patton Jr.
Karl Malden	...	General Omar N. Bradley
Stephen Young	...	Captain Chester B. Hansen
Michael Strong	...	Brigadier General Hobart Carver
Carey Loftin	...	General Bradley's Driver (as Cary Loftin)
Albert Dumortier	...	Moroccan Minister
Frank Latimore	...	Lieutenant Colonel Henry Davenport
Morgan Paull	...	Captain Richard N. Jenson
Karl Michael Vogler	...	Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
Bill Hickman	...	General Patton's Driver
Pat Zurica	...	First Lieutenant Alexander Stiller (as Patrick J. Zurica)
James Edwards	...	Sergeant William George Meeks
Lawrence Dobkin	...	Colonel Gaston Bell
David Bauer	...	Lieutenant Gen. Harry Buford
John Barrie	...	Air Vice-Marshal Sir Arthur Coningham

Storyline

"Patton" tells the tale of General George S. Patton, famous tank commander of World War II. The film begins with Patton's career in North Africa and progresses through the invasion of Europe and the fall of the Third Reich. Side plots also speak of Patton's numerous faults such his temper and tendency toward insubordination, faults that would prevent him from becoming the lead American general in the Normandy Invasion as well as to his being relieved as Occupation Commander of Germany.

---

Plot Keywords:

general | allies | destiny | tank | tough guy | 

---

Taglines:

Direct from its sensational reserved seat engagement.

---

Genres:

Biography | Drama | War

---

Certificate:

GP

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German French Russian Arabic Italian

Release Date:

2 April 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Salute to a Rebel

Filming Locations:

Royal Palace of Madrid, Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$61,700,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

172 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) (Westrex Recording System) Mono (35 mm prints) DTS 70 mm (70 mm re-release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Somewhat perversely, this film was re-released in early 1971 following the announcement of Oscar nominations on a double bill with a very different war film, also from 20th Century-Fox and a Oscar nominee for best picture: MASH (1970).

---

Goofs

In the war strategy for the Sicilian invasion, Patton says that the ancient Greek general, Alcibiades, knew that in order to invade the Italian peninsula, you do it via Sicily. Patton said that it was a no-brainer for "old Alcibiades." The Athenian general, however, was not interested in attacking the Italian peninsula -- he never did -- but only was to invade Sicily itself -- and he failed failed miserably. This would not have been an inspiring argument for the Allies to invade Sicily in WWII.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Patton: Now I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country.

---

Crazy Credits

One of the very, very few Twentieth Century-Fox films in which that company's logo is not shown at all, beginning or end. The film simply begins with the opening speech, and the opening Fox logo is replaced with an in-credit text-only notice after the speech. However, recent television showings have added the logo (not on DVD prints), and the addition is obviously spliced in from another piece of film.

---

Connections

Referenced in Star Wars Rebels: Flight of the Defender (2017)

---

Soundtracks

God Save the King!
(uncredited)
Traditional
In the background for a London scene

User Reviews

A fine tribute to a great patriot and fearless warrior

I am a fan of both General Patton and the movie that captured a portion of his duty in WWII. It exposes Patton's incredible strengths and vulnerabilities. George C. Scott gives one of his best performances. It leaves the viewer with the impression that Patton unnecessarily risked GI lives to "make a bigger splash" with his peers and the media. Statistics show that his aggressive "hold 'em by the nose and kick 'em in the ass" strategy actually resulted in lower casualties. Watched in conjunction with "The Big Red One" and "Saving Private Ryan" gives one an initial sense of the horror and sacrifice in the European Theatre. As a mini-biography, as an introduction to WWII, as a lesson in leadership under tremendous adversity or just for pure inspiration, Patton is one of the great films of my lifetime.